Melpomene Murray's concerns are those of any teenager: homework, friends, dates. But Melpomene lives on the Flying Dutchman, an asteroid co...
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Aug 28, 2011
Allyson
rated it: 
I haven't read much science fiction, but I'm glad a friend passed this book along to me. While it wasn't on the level of Ender's Game (which I think will always be my favorite sci-fi book no matter what), I'm glad I had the opportunity to add this book to my list of reads. Melpomene Murray and Randy Scwartz, and all the children aboard the Flying Dutchmen were interesting characters. It was really cool to see how they viewed life, especially in contrast to Theophilius, a groundhog (a person from
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Jul 07, 2009
Lee
rated it: 
I really enjoyed this read. The beginning threw me off a bit-the story is told as though written by the main character. The main character is also quite young (12) although people reach adult status earlier in the novel.
It also uses made-up slang, which I usually find very annoying and overused in most books, but it wasn't annoying in this one. For one thing, there were only a couple of slang words, which were easy to pick up from the context and weren't used so much that they becam More...
It also uses made-up slang, which I usually find very annoying and overused in most books, but it wasn't annoying in this one. For one thing, there were only a couple of slang words, which were easy to pick up from the context and weren't used so much that they becam More...
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Jul 18, 2010
Jan
rated it: 
Although the main character is thirteen-year-old Melpomene Murrary, this is not a story for young people. Although she lives on an asteroid colony desperately needed to supply a dying Earth, this is not a story about space and space-faring. It is very much a story of social engineering in the mode of Ender's Game. It asks the same question, what would you do to a group of young people who must must fulfill the desperate mission of Earth? Instead of competitive geniuses though, these engineer
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Oct 14, 2010
Rose
rated it:
"Orbital Resonance" by John Barnes examines the life of its protagonist, 13-year old Melpomeme Murray, in a combination of a coming of age tale and sociological and political commentary about an alternate future involving a rapidly degenerating Earth. I didn't know what to expect for this, being my first Barnes novel overall, but I was pleasantly surprised and drawn into many of the moments within this work.
Melopomeme is a likable lead to follow. I'll fully admit that I like More...
Melopomeme is a likable lead to follow. I'll fully admit that I like More...
Jan 09, 2008
Wealhtheow
rated it:
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Jul 23, 2008
Gar
rated it:
Part of John Barnes' "Century Next Door/Meme Wars" un-series (as they're not sequels, simply related and connected). Definitely the most lighthearted and least apocalyptic of the three I've read (still tracking down the fourth), but also the least satisfying.
At this point in the world's timeline, Earth is pretty much a shambles, its ecology thrashing due to some extrapolated quasi-weapons technology and thus most heavy industry moved off-world. The Flying Dutchman is a " More...
At this point in the world's timeline, Earth is pretty much a shambles, its ecology thrashing due to some extrapolated quasi-weapons technology and thus most heavy industry moved off-world. The Flying Dutchman is a " More...
Mar 26, 2011
Andreas
rated it: 
Tale of some youngsters growing up in an asteroid habitat. I never really understood the point of this one. I think the morale is that kids will inherit the world, and parents should not pollute their brains with old ways of thinking. But it is so dull. Pah.
http://www.books.rosboch.net/?p=386
http://www.books.rosboch.net/?p=386
Oct 08, 2011
Judy
rated it:
Great story by one of my favorite authors. The main character, Melpomene, is a teenager growing up on a world called the Flying Dutchman, an asteroid colony, at a time when the Earth her parents left behind has been ravaged by war and pollution.
Nov 23, 2007
Joanne
rated it:
A coming-of-age story told by a 13-year-old girl raised on a space station. The book deals with the socially-indoctrinated children born on the station, and their conflict with their Earth-born parents and the new boy in class.
I was a little surprised that I enjoyed this as much as I did -- since the story is told in the form of an autobiography, the writing is often awkward, which I thought would annoy me. Instead, it helps make the protagonist's character more real.
I' More...
I was a little surprised that I enjoyed this as much as I did -- since the story is told in the form of an autobiography, the writing is often awkward, which I thought would annoy me. Instead, it helps make the protagonist's character more real.
I' More...
Oct 22, 2008
Julian
rated it:
It's hard to really say why, but I think this has been done by others and done better. It's the story of kids on a space station who are going to inherit, basically, the remains of fucked-up humanity. Oh wait, I think my problem is that I read Beggars in Spain and this is a bit too along the same lines but can't quite compare. Maybe it's unfair to judge based on that but I can't help it. It was still an interesting story and worth reading.
Dec 25, 2007
Mark
rated it:
I read this book a long time ago and can barely remember it. That probably tells you all you need to know about it's greatness. lol
Jul 18, 2010
Christian
rated it:
I read this back when it was first released and loved it, but it's been so long that I'm re-reading it to see what I think today. It remains pretty interesting. Also, the author created a great slang for the 13-year-old main character and her friends living on an asteroid in Earth/Mars orbit. Lim koapy. Pos-def.
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